Upper Saint Regis Lake, New York: Fishing Spots and Seasons

• Overview

  Upper Saint Regis Lake falls in Franklin County, part of New York. The surroundings are lake country bush. About 720 acres, so local knowledge or a boat saves a lot of walking. Size puts it in the front rank of our Franklin County list. Saranac Lake sits 9 miles from the bank. Further out sit Tupper Lake (16 miles) and Lake Placid (17 miles). No boundary runs near, so the county rules hold throughout.

• Where to Fish on Upper Saint Regis Lake

  Without a survey to go on, judge depth from how the bank falls away. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Open biodiversity records for Franklin County list brook trout, white sucker, brown trout, yellow perch and smallmouth bass. County records show the wider picture rather than this one place. Take Upper Saint Regis Lake a stretch at a time.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The year swings from about 13°F in January to roughly 65°F in July. Cold locks it up for a good stretch each year. The freeze runs deep into the year, with break-up near late April. Break-up near late April, freeze-up near early December: that is the shape of an average year. May into June fishes hardest, and September gives a second good stretch before the lid returns. Keep it in mind when planning a trip to Upper Saint Regis Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  Nothing on record says whether the bank is open or closed. A pier 0.9 miles from here gives a platform over deeper water. There is a campsite half a mile from the water. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Some banks are open only from a marked point. Some ground is open by custom rather than by right, so tread carefully. For a change of water, Bog Pond is 0.5 miles distant. Nothing on Upper Saint Regis Lake should be assumed from this page alone.